Pre-Applied Waterless Adhesive On HVAC Facings With Sealable Flange

ABSTRACT

A fibrous insulation product having at least one facing material adhered thereto is provided. The facing includes a pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive that is thermoplastic and heat activated. Accordingly, the facing may be repaired or repositioned in the field with the use of a hot applicator. In at least one embodiment, the fibrous insulation product is a duct board formed of an insulation layer with a vapor barrier adhered to a first major surface and a fibrous web adhered to a second major surface. The vapor barrier is preferably wider than the insulation layer to form a sealing flange. The waterless, thin-film adhesive may be placed on a sealing flange and heat sealed without the use of hand applied foil tape. The waterless, thin-film adhesive reduces odor potential and improves fiberglass recovery. In addition, the waterless, thin-film adhesive requires less energy to cure than a water-based adhesive, thereby reducing cost.

TECHNICAL FIELD AND INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to rotary fiberglass insulation,and more particularly, to fibrous insulation products faced with one ormore facing materials having thereon a waterless, pre-applied thin-filmadhesive, including UVAC product facings with a sealable flange.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Ducts and conduits are used to convey air in building heating,ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. Often these ducts areformed of sheet metal, and, as a result, do not possess good thermal oracoustical properties. In order to enhance these properties, the ductsare lined with a flexible thermal and sound insulating material. Ductinsulation used in HVAC systems typically includes a facing layeradhered to an insulation layer. Often the facing layer acts as, or is, avapor barrier. The fibrous duct insulation is typically formed of asuitable organic or inorganic material such as fiberglass. Typicalfiberglass duct boards or duct liners are constructed of a fiberglassinsulation layer having a density from about 1.0 to about 7.0 pounds percubic foot (pcf) and a thickness from about 0.5 to about 3.0 inches. Thefacing material is commonly affixed to the fibrous insulation by anadhesive. Non-limiting examples of adhesive materials used inconjunction with fibrous insulation are set forth below.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,738,998 to Uffner, et al. discloses thermal insulatingarticles that include a laminate of thermal insulation and a flexiblejacket material. The insulation and the jacket material are adhered toeach other by a hot melt adhesive that consists essentially of anasphalt an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and a wax.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,106,446 to DiRado, et al. teaches a hot melt adhesivefor insulation assemblies for HVAC systems that includes (1) 10-50% ofan isotactic thermoplastic polybutylene-1/ethylene copolymer containingfrom about 5.5-10% by weight ethylene, (2) 20-50% of a tackifier, (3)15-50% of an amorphous diluent having a softening point greater than 90°C., (4) 0-2% of an antioxidant, and (5) 0-5% of a wax.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,277,955 to Schelhorn, et a., discloses an insulationassembly for insulating buildings. The insulation assembly includes alow density, binderless mineral fiber batt enclosed by an exterior layeror cover. In one embodiment, the exterior layer is a heated polyethylenelayer that is applied directly to the fibrous glass batt. The heatedpolyethylene serves as an adhesive layer that joins the film to themineral fiber batt.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,986,367 to Toas, et al. discloses an insulation productfor installing around ducts that includes a fibrous insulation board anda reinforcement fabric. The insulation board and reinforcement fabricare laminated together using an adhesive material. The adhesive materialmay be a removable adhesive, a permanent adhesive, or a repositionableadhesive. Examples of suitable adhesives include water-based adhesives,hot melt glues, a liquid adhesive, or a tape.

U.S. Patent Publication No. 2005/0031819 to Mankell, et al discloses aduct board or duct liner that is formed of (1) a fibrous material boundby a resinous binder, (2) an outer facing layer adhered to an outersurface of the insulating layer, and (3) a water repellant mat faceradhered to an interior surface of the insulating layer opposite theouter surface. A liquid adhesive is utilized to adhere the outer facinglayer and the mat facer to the insulation layer.

U.S. Patent Publication No. 2005/0272338 to Shaffer teaches a facedfibrous insulation product that has a mat on one or more surfaces of afibrous insulation. The mat facing includes a pre-applied adhesive thatis heat activated to provide adhesion to the fibrous insulation. A lowmelting point adhesive and a relatively higher temperature melting pointadhesive are distributed on a surface of the mat facing and heated to atemperature above the melting point of the low melting adhesive toadhere the high melting point adhesive to the mat facing. Suitable lowmelting point adhesives include polyethylene, ethylene vinyl acetate,and other polymer adhesives. Examples of high melting point adhesivesinclude polyamide adhesives and phenolic powders.

U.S. Patent Publication No. 2005/0272338 to Shaffer discloses a facedfibrous insulation product that has a fibrous web on one or moresurfaces of a fibrous insulation layer. The mat facing includes apre-applied adhesive that is heat activated to provide adhesion to thefibrous insulation layer. Particles of the adhesive are distributed on asurface of the fibrous web and heated to a temperature above thetemperature of the melting point of the adhesive to adhere the adhesivepowder to the fibrous nonwoven web. Examples of suitable adhesivesinclude polyethylene, polypropylene, ethylene vinyl acetate, polyamides,epoxies, urethane, melamine, and phenolic powders.

U.S. Patent Publication No. 2006/0083889 to Schuckers discloses a ductboard that is formed of a fibrous duct board layer, an adhesivematerial, and a second insulating board layer. The adhesive material maybe any adhesive material that adheres the fibrous duct board and thesecond insulating board layer. Examples of suitable adhesives include ahot melt glue or a water-based adhesive.

Although there are numerous types of adhesives known in the artwater-based adhesives are conventionally utilized to adhere the facinglayer to the fibrous insulation. However, water-based adhesives presentnumerous problems, such as surface foil corrosion and the stimulation oftrimethylamine (TMA), which produces an undesirable odor. In addition,an enormous amount of energy is required to remove the water and curethe water-based adhesive. Accordingly, there exists a need in the artfor a fibrous insulation product that can be utilized as a duct linerand which is formed using an adhesive that is easy to use, isinexpensive, requires minimal energy to cure, and eliminates the needfor expensive foil tape.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a faced insulationproduct that includes at least one facing layer adhered to a majorsurface of an insulation layer. The facing layer is formed of a facingmaterial that has thereon a pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive.The waterless, thin-film adhesive is thermoplastic and heat activated.In at least one embodiment, the waterless, thin-film adhesive is apolyethylene copolymer. Due to the thermoplastic nature of thewaterless, thin-film adhesive, the facing material may advantageously berepositioned or repaired in the field by the application of heat. Thefacing material may be any facing material that is suitable for afibrous insulation product, such as a nonwoven mat, web, or veil, or avapor barrier. Application of the waterless, thin-film adhesive to thefacing layer(s) reduces the time associated with curing the adhesive. Inparticular, the waterless, thin-film adhesive requires much less energyto cure than conventional water-based adhesives, which, in turn, mayresult in a reduction in manufacturing costs. Additionally, the lack ofwater in the waterless, thin-film adhesive helps to reduce or eliminatedetrimental effects to the insulation product typically caused bywater-based adhesives, such as surface foil corrosion and thestimulation of trimethylamine (TMA) and its associated odor.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a fibrous ductboard that has facing materials on first and second major surfaces of aninsulation layer, a sealing flange, and optionally, male and femaleshiplap edges. In one exemplary embodiment, a first facing material is avapor barrier positioned on a first major surface of a fibrousinsulation layer and a second facing material is a non-woven fibrous webpositioned on a second, opposing major surface of the fibrous insulationlayer. Desirably, the first facing layer is wider than the insulationlayer and projects beyond the insulation layer along a transverse edgethereof to form a sealing flange. In addition, the first facing layermay be applied to the fibrous insulation layer in an offset manner suchthat a transverse edge of the first facing layer extends beyond acorresponding transverse edge of the fibrous insulation layer to form amale shiplap edge, from which the sealing flange extends. The facingmaterials have thereon a pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive. In apreferred embodiment, the waterless, thin-film adhesive is apolyethylene copolymer. The waterless, thin-film adhesive seals thesealing flange and thus reduces, or even eliminates, the need for foiltape or staples, which are conventionally used in the industry. Becausefoil tape is expensive and time consuming to apply, the use of thewaterless, thin-film adhesive saves both time and money. Additionally,the sealing flange may be securely and easily bonded in the field, suchas with a hot iron, and may be repositioned due to the thermoplasticnature of the waterless, thin-film adhesive.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a method offorming a fibrous insulation product such as a duct board, duct liner,or duct wrap. A waterless, thin-film adhesive is pre-applied to a facingmaterial to form a facing layer. The facing layer having the pre-appliedwaterless, thin-film adhesive thereon is adhered to a major surface of afibrous insulation layer by heating the facing material and the fibrousinsulation layer to a temperature at or above the melting point of thewaterless, thin-film adhesive for a time sufficient to adhere the facingto the fibrous insulation layer. In exemplary embodiments, a firstfacing layer is adhered to a first major surface of the fibrousinsulation layer and a second facing layer is adhered to a second majorsurface of the fibrous insulation layer. The first facing layer may bewider than the insulation layer to project beyond the insulation layeralong a transverse edge thereof to form a sealing flange. The waterless,thin-film adhesive is thermoplastic and heat activated. In preferredembodiments, the waterless, thin-film adhesive is a polyethylenecopolymer.

It is an advantage of the present invention that the waterless,thin-film adhesive may be pre-applied to a sealing flange of a ductboard and sealed by the application of heat without the use of tape orstaples.

It is another advantage of the present invention that less energy isrequired to cure the waterless, thin-film adhesive compared towater-based adhesives.

It is yet another advantage of the present invention that the waterless,thin-film adhesive may reduce or eliminate the use of foil tapeconventionally used to seal duct sealing flanges.

It is also an advantage of the present invention that the waterless,thin-film adhesive reduces surface foil corrosion and permits a betteradhesion of foil tape and duct board foil if such foil tape is utilized.

It is still another advantage of the present invention that thewaterless, thin-film adhesive may be evenly or substantially evenlyapplied to the facer material.

It is a further advantage of the present invention that the facingmaterial having thereon the pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesivemay advantageously be repaired or repositioned in the field with the useof a hot applicator.

It is yet another advantage of the present invention that the waterless,thin-film adhesive exhibits a constant or nearly constant weightdistribution across the facing.

It is a feature of the present invention that the waterless, thin-filmadhesive is thermoplastic and heat activated.

It is another feature of the present invention that the lack of water inthe waterless, thin-film adhesive reduces odors that commonly occur withwater-based, liquid adhesives.

It is a further feature of the present invention that facing materialshaving thereon a pre-applied layer of the waterless, thin-film adhesivemay be adhered to one or more surfaces of a fibrous insulation layer.

It is yet another feature of the present invention that the waterless,thin-film adhesive may be positioned on the facing material and adheredthereto via the application of heat.

The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages of theinvention will appear more fully hereinafter from a consideration of thedetailed description that follows. It is to be expressly understood,however, that the drawings are for illustrative purposes and are not tobe construed as defining the limits of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The advantages of this invention will be apparent upon consideration ofthe following detailed disclosure of the invention, especially whentaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of a facing layer formed of a fibrousweb having thereon a waterless, thin-film adhesive according to oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of a manufacturing line for producinga faced fibrous insulation product in which the faced insulation productis rolled by a roll-up device according on an exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration similar to that of FIG. 2, butshowing an alternate embodiment of the manufacturing line of FIG. 2where the faced insulation product is cut into panels according toanother exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration depicting an alternate embodiment ofthe manufacturing line of FIG. 3 in which the facer is applied to a topsurface of an uncured pack of glass fibers;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view, partially cut away, of a faced insulationproduct having a facing material on one major surface thereof accordingto at least one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6A is a schematic illustration of a faced fibrous insulationproduct having a sealing flange extending beyond a transverse edge ofthe fibrous insulation layer;

FIG. 6B is a schematic illustration of the insulation product depictedin FIG. 6A being folded and used as a duct wrap;

FIG. 6C is a schematic illustration of a faced fibrous insulationproduct similar to that of FIG. 6A, but having a thinner insulationlayer;

FIG. 6D is a schematic illustration of the insulation product depictedin FIG. 6C being folded into a duct liner;

FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of a manufacturing line for producinga faced fibrous insulation product in which the faced insulation producthas a facing material on a first and second major surface according onone exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view, partially cut away, of a faced insulationproduct having a facing material on two major surfaces thereof accordingto at least one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a schematic illustration depicting an alternate embodiment ofthe manufacturing line of FIG. 7 in which the faced insulation productis bisected and rolled into two separate rolls by roll-up devices;

FIG. 10A is schematic illustration depicting an alternative process offorming a faced fibrous insulation product in a post-curing oven oroff-line process using a heated platen to adhere the facing material tothe fibrous insulation;

FIG. 10B is a schematic illustration of an alternative process offorming a faced fibrous insulation product in a post-curing oven oroff-line process using a heated roller to adhere the facing material tothe fibrous insulation;

FIG. 11 is a schematic illustration of an alternative process of formingthe faced fibrous insulation product in a post-curing oven or off-lineprocess using a heated caterpillar to adhere the facing to the fibrousinsulation;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a duct board according to at least oneexemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a schematic illustration of a duct board similar to that ofFIG. 12 but including grooves to permit folding of the duct board into apredetermined shape according to at least one exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 14 is a schematic illustration of a duct board folded into an airduct according to at least one exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a duct board according to at least oneexemplary embodiment of the present invention, the duct boardincorporating male and female shiplap edges and a sealing flange;

FIG. 16 is a schematic illustration of a duct board similar to thatshown in FIG. 15 but incorporating grooves to facilitate folding of theduct board into a predetermined shape; and

FIG. 17 is a schematic illustration of a duct board as depicted in FIG.16 but folded into an air duct with the shiplap edges engaging at thejoint between the opposing ends of the duct board.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION AND PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used hereinhave the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill inthe all to which the invention belongs. Although any methods andmaterials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used inthe practice or testing of the present invention, the preferred methodsand materials are described herein. All references cited herein,including published or corresponding U.S. or foreign patentapplications, issued U.S. or foreign patents, and any other references,are each incorporated by reference in their entireties, including alldata, tables, figures, and text presented in the cited references.

In the drawings, the thickness of the lines, layers, and regions may beexaggerated for clarity. It is to be noted that like numbers foundthroughout the figures denote like elements. It will be understood thatwhen an element is referred to as being “on,” another element, it can bedirectly on or against the other element or intervening elements may bepresent. The terms “facing” and “facing material” may be usedinterchangeably herein.

The present invention relates to a waterless, thin-film adhesive that ispre-applied to a facing material. The facing with the pre-appliedadhesive may subsequently be adhered to surfaces of fibrous insulationmaterials to form duct boards for HVAC systems. In addition, thewaterless, thin-film adhesive may be placed on a sealing flange of aduct board and heat sealed without the use of hand applied foil tape.The waterless, thin-film adhesive reduces odor potential, improvesfiberglass recovery, and reduces manufacturing and production costs.

The facing material is not particularly limited, and may be any facingmaterial that is suitable for a fibrous insulation product, such as anonwoven mat, web, or veil, or a vapor barrier such as afoil/skrim/Kraft (FSK), Kraft/asphalt, or polymer and foil/scrim/Kraftlayers. FIG. 1 depicts a facer with a waterless, thin-film adhesiveadhered thereto according to one embodiment of the present invention. Asshown in FIG. 1, the facer 12 may include a fibrous web 5 and awaterless, thin-film adhesive 7 adhered to a major surface of thefibrous web 5. The fibrous web 5 may be formed from fibers such as, butnot limited to, glass fibers, mineral wool, rock wool, polymer fibers,synthetic fibers, and/or natural fibers. As used in this application,the term “natural fiber” is meant to indicate plant fibers extractedfrom any part of a plant, including, but not limited to, the stein,seeds, leaves, roots, or bast. Desirably, the fibrous web 5 is formed oforganic fibers such as rayon, polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon,polyester, and mixtures thereof. Continuous fibers and/ormulti-component fibers such as bicomponent or tricomponent polymerfibers may also be utilized in forming the web 5. The bicomponent fibersmay be formed in a sheath-core arrangement in which the sheath is formedof first polymer fibers that substantially surround a core formed ofsecond polymer fibers. Although the web 5 is preferably a non-woven webformed by conventional dry-laid processes, other materials such as pointbonded, woven, and other non-woven materials such as needled,spunbonded, or meltblown webs may be used. A binder, flame-retardants,pigments, and/or other conventional additives may also be included inthe fibrous web 5. Optionally, the web 5 may be treated with a fungicideand/or bactericide either during or after manufacturing. Similarly, thewaterless, thin-film adhesive may be heat bonded to a vapor barrier(e.g., FSK layer) and subsequently applied to a fibrous insulationproduct.

The waterless, thin-film adhesive is thermoplastic and heat activated.The thickness of the waterless, thin-film adhesive is desirably as smallas possible so long as the adhesive has sufficient bond strength andmeets such required standards such as ASTM E84 Flame and Smokecertifications. In exemplary embodiments, the waterless, thin-filmadhesive has a thickness less than or equal to about 60 microns, fromabout 6.0 to about 30.0 microns, or from about 10 microns to about 15microns. The waterless, thin-film adhesive is applied to the facingmaterial via the application of heat. For instance, the waterless,thin-film adhesive may be positioned on the facing material and thenadhered to the facing material by heating the facing material with a hotplate or other suitable heating device (e.g., an oven). The facingmaterial may similarly be adhered to a fibrous insulation layer byheating the facing material and the fibrous insulation to a temperatureat or above the melting point of the waterless, thin-film adhesive for atime sufficient to adhere the facing to the fibrous insulation layer.Non-limiting examples of suitable adhesives include an ethylenecopolymer, polyturethane, ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), amorphouspolyolefin, polyethylene, low density polyethylene (LDPE), cellophane,polyethylene terephthalate (PETP), polyvinyl chloride (PVC) nylons,polypropylene, polystyrene, polyamides, and cellulose acetate.Additionally, the waterless, thin-film adhesive may incorporatepre-engineered components to address requirements set forth according toASTM E184 (Flame and Smoke certification), color pigmentation, staticguards, and/or pre-designed scavengers.

The lack of water in the thin-film adhesive helps to reduce odors thatcommonly occur with water-based, liquid adhesives. Because the thin-filmadhesive is thermoplastic and heat activated, the facing mayadvantageously be repaired or repositioned in the field with the use ofa hot applicator. Conventional adhesives are thermoset and do not allowfor easy re-application of the facing layer(s). In addition, thethin-film adhesive may be evenly or substantially evenly applied to thefacing material, unlike conventional liquid adhesives which are commonlyunevenly applied to the facing material. Further, there is a reductionin down time due to the optimization of the application of thewaterless, thin-film adhesive. Unlike the waterless, thin-film adhesive,water-based adhesives require constant monitoring. Further, thewaterless, thin-film adhesive may reduce or eliminate the use of foiltape conventionally used to seal duct sealing (closing) flanges.

The facing with the pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive may beapplied to one or more surfaces of a fibrous insulation layer to form afaced insulation product. The facing provides improved surface quality,high and controlled adhesion, and is easily manufactured. Thepre-applied facing may be input into the glass fiber forming section ofa fibrous insulation production line as shown in FIG. 2. It is to beappreciated that although glass fiber insulation is discussed herein,mineral wool, rock wool, polymer fibers, synthetic fibers, and/ornatural fibers may alternatively or additionally be utilized in formingthe insulation. Fibrous glass insulation products are generally formedof matted glass fibers bonded together by a cured thermoset polymericmaterial. The manufacture of glass fiber insulation products may becarried out in a continuous process by fiberizing molten glass andimmediately forming a fibrous glass batt on a moving conveyor.

Turning to FIG. 2, glass may be melted in a tank (not shown) andsupplied to a fiber forming device such as a fiberizing spinner 15. Thespinners 15 are rotated at high speeds. Centrifugal force causes themolten glass to pass through the holes in the circumferential sidewallsof the fiberizing spinners 15 to form glass fibers. Single componentglass fibers of random lengths may be attenuated from the fiberizingspinners 15 and blown generally downwardly, that is, generallyperpendicular to the plane of the spinners 15, by blowers 20 positionedwithin a forming chamber 25. The blowers 20 turn the fibers downward toform a veil or curtain 30. Non-limiting examples of glass fibers thatmay be utilized in the present invention are described in U.S. Pat. No.6,527,014 to Aubourg; U.S. Pat. No. 5,932,499 to Xu et al.; U.S. Pat.No. 5,523,264 to Mattison; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,055,428 to Porter, thecontents of which are expressly incorporated by reference in theirentirety.

The glass fibers, while in transit in the forming chamber 25 and whilestill hot from the drawing operation, are sprayed with an aqueous bindercomposition by suitable spray applicators 35 so as to result in adistribution of the binder composition throughout the formed uncuredpack 40. Water may also be applied to the glass fibers in the formingchamber 25, such as by spraying, prior to the application of the bindercomposition to at least partially cool the glass fibers. Although anyconventional binder such as phenol-formaldehyde and urea-formaldehydemay be used, the binder is desirably a low formaldehyde bindercomposition, such as a polycarboxylic based binder, a polyaciylic acidglycerol (PAG) binder, or a polyaciylic acid triethanolamine (PATbinder). Suitable polycarboxy binder compositions for use in the instantinvention include a polycarboxy polymer, a crosslinking agent, and,optionally, a catalyst. Such binders arc known for use in connectionwith rotary fiberglass insulation. Examples of such binder technologyare found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,318,990 to Straus; 5,340,868 to Straus etal.; 5,661,213 to Arkens et al.; 6,274,661 to Chen et al.; 6,699,945 toChen et al; and 6,884,849 to Chen et al., each of which is expresslyincorporated entirely by reference. The binder may be present in anamount from about 2% to about 25% by weight of the total product, andpreferably from about 5% to about 20% by weight of the total product,and most preferably from about 10% to about 18% by weight of the totalproduct.

The glass fibers having the uncured resinous binder adhered thereto maybe gathered and formed into an uncured pack 40 on the facer 12 on anendless forming conveyor 45 within the forming chamber 25 with the aidof a vacuum (not shown) drawn through the insulation pack 40 from belowthe forming conveyor 45. It is to be noted that throughout thisapplication, facers 12, 16 are facing materials having thereon apre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive as described herein. The facer12 is supplied to the conveyor 45 by roll 90. The residual heat from theglass fibers and the flow of air through the insulation pack 40 andfacer 12 during the forming operation are generally sufficient tovolatilize a majority of the water from the binder before the glassfibers exit the forming chamber 25, thereby leaving the remainingcomponents of the binder on the fibers as a viscous or semi-viscoushigh-solids liquid.

The coated uncured pack 40, which is in a compressed state due to theflow of air through the pack 40 in the forming chamber 25, and the facer12 are then transferred out of the forming chamber 25 under exit roller50 to a transfer zone 55 where the insulation pack 40 vertically expandsdue to the resiliency of the glass fibers. The expanded uncured pack 40and facer 12 are then heated, such as by conveying the pack 40 through acuring oven 60 where heated air is blown through the insulation pack 40and facer 12 to evaporate any remaining water in the binder, cure thebinder and the adhesive, rigidly bond the fibers together in theinsulation pack 40, and adhere the facer 12 to the insulation pack 40.The facer 12 and the insulation pack 40 are heated to a temperature ator above the temperature of the above the waterless, thin-film adhesivefor a time period sufficient to at least partially melt the waterless,thin-film adhesive and bond the adhesive to the insulation pack 40.Specifically, heated air is forced though a fan 75 through the loweroven conveyor 70, the insulation pack 40 and the facer 12, the upperoven conveyor 65, and out of the curing oven 60 through an exhaustapparatus 80. The cured binder imparts strength and resiliency to thefaced insulation product 10. It is to be appreciated that the drying andcuring of the binder and the waterless, thin-film adhesive may becarried out in either one or two different steps. Also, in the curingoven 60, the uncured pack 40 may be compressed by upper and lowerforaminous oven conveyors 65, 70 to form the faced fibrous insulationproduct 10 having a predetermined thickness.

The faced fibrous insulation 10 then exits the curing oven 60 and may berolled by roll-up device 82 for storage and/or shipment. The facedfibrous insulation product 10 may subsequently be unrolled and cut ordie pressed to form fibrous insulation parts (e.g., duct boards).Alternatively, as depicted in FIG. 3, the faced fibrous insulationproduct 10 may be cut to a predetermined length by a cutting device suchas a blade or knife 83 to form panels 84 of the faced fibrousinsulation. The panels 84 may be stacked or bagged by a packagingapparatus 86 If desired, channels or grooves, such as v-shaped grooves,may be formed in the inner surface of the fibrous insulation product 10for folding or bending the fibrous insulation product 10 into a ductliner, as is discussed in more detail below.

In an alternate embodiment depicted in FIG. 4, an uncured pack 40 isformed as described in detail above with respect to FIG. 2. Once theuncured pack 40 is formed and exits the forming chamber 25, a facer 12is applied to a top surface of the uncured pack 40 from roll 90. Thefacer 12 and the uncured pack 40 enter the curing oven 60 where heatedair is forced though a fan 75 through the lower oven conveyor 70, theinsulation pack 40 and the facer 12, the upper oven conveyor 65, and outof the curing oven 60 through an exhaust apparatus 80. As the facedfibrous insulation product 10 exits the oven 60, it may be cut intopanels 84 by the cutting device 83 and collected by the gatheringapparatus 86. Alternatively, the faced fibrous insulation product 10 maybe rolled by a roll-up device (not illustrated) for storage and/orshipment. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the faced insulation product 10formed by the processes depicted in FIGS. 2, 3, and 4 include a fibrousinsulation layer 14 and a facing material 12 affixed to a major surfaceof the insulation layer 14. In a related embodiment, the facer 12 may beapplied to one surface of the fibrous insulation 14 where the facer 12is larger than the fibrous insulation 14 and drapes over the edges ofthe insulation layer 14 to face one or more of the minor surfaces of thefibrous insulation 14.

In one or more exemplary embodiment, the faced insulation product 10 maybe utilized as a duct liner or duct wrap. For example, a duct liner orduct wrap may be formed from the insulation products described abovewhere the insulation layer 14 has thereon a single facer 12 that iswider than the insulation layer 14 along a transverse edge to form aflange 134. In preferred embodiments, the facer 12 is a foil/scrim/Kraftlayer. As shown in FIGS. 6 a and 6 b, the duct wrap 145 may be formed ofa facer 12 including a flange 134 adhered to an insulation layer 14 by awaterless, thin-film adhesive 125. The duct wrap 145 may be wrappedaround a sheet metal duct 137 and the edges of the duct wrap 145 sealedby the seating flange 134. Specifically, the sealing flange 134 may beadhered or bonded to the adjoining surface of the facing layer 12 (e.g.,a foil/scrim/Kraft layer) by heat and pressure due to the pre-appliedwaterless, thin-film adhesive 125. Although the flange 134 is depictedat the middle of a wall of the metal duct 137, one skilled in the artwill recognize that the location of the sealing flange 134 on the finalassembly, including the duct liner 147 described below, could be at acorner of the duct 137, or at other locations, depending on the locationof the grooves 144 within the insulation product 10.

Turning to FIGS, 6 c and 6 d, a duct liner 147 having a facing 12 with aflange 134 adhered to a fibrous insulation layer 14 is illustrated. Theduct liner 147 may be folded into a shape substantially similar to theshape of the duct into which it is to be inserted (e.g. a substantiallysquare shape as shown in FIG. 6 d) and inserted into a sheet metal toform a duct assembly (not illustrated). The duct wrap 145 and duct liner147 enhance the thermal efficiency of duct work in a building and reducenoise associated with the movement of air through the air duct.

Alternatively, facing materials may be applied to both major surfaces ofthe fibrous insulation 14, as shown in FIG. 7. In one exemplaryembodiment, molten glass (not illustrated) is supplied to fiberizingspinners 15 that are rotated at high speeds to force the molten glassthrough holes in the circumferential sidewalls of the fiberizingspinners 15 and form glass fibers. Blowers 20 direct a gas stream in asubstantially downward direction to impinge the attenuated fibers,turning them downward, to form a veil or curtain 30. The fibers may besprayed with an aqueous binder by suitable spray applicators 35. Theglass fibers having the uncured resinous binder adhered thereto may thenbe gathered and formed into an uncured pack 40 on a perforated endlessconveyor 45 within the forming chamber 25. The coated uncured pack 40,which is in a compressed state due to the flow of air through the pack40 in the forming chamber 25 is then transferred out of the formingchamber 25 under exit roller 50 to a transfer zone 55 where theinsulation pack 40 vertically expands due to the resiliency of the glassfibers.

As the uncured pack 40 exits the forming chamber 25, facing materials12, 16 are positioned on the top and bottom major surface of the uncuredpack. It is to be appreciated that the facing materials 12, 16 may bethe same or different. For example, one of the facing layers may be afibrous web and the other facing layer may be a vapor barrier. Thefacing materials 12, 16 are fed to the uncured pack 40 from rolls 90 and92, respectively. The expanded uncured pack 40 and facers 12, 16 arethen heated in a curing oven 60 where heated air is blown through theinsulation pack 40 and facers 12, 16. It is contemplated that facer 12may alternatively be supplied to the conveyor 45 prior to the formationof the uncured pack 40 such that the fibers formed from the spinners 15are deposited onto the facer 12. Heated air is forced though a fan 75through the lower oven conveyor 70, the insulation pack 40 and thefacers 12, 16, the upper oven conveyor 65, and out of the curing oven 60through an exhaust apparatus 80. Also, in the curing oven 60, theuncured pack 40 may be compressed by upper and lower foraminous ovenconveyors 65, 70 to form a faced fibrous insulation product 10 having apredetermined thickness. The double-faced fibrous insulation product 10then exits the curing oven 60 and may be rolled by roll-up device 82 forstorage and/or shipment. The faced fibrous insulation product 10 maysubsequently be unrolled and cut or die pressed to form fibrousinsulation parts. Channels or grooves, such as v-shaped grooves, mayoptionally be formed in the inner surface of the fibrous insulationproduct 10 for folding or bending the fibrous insulation product 10 intoa duct liner.

FIG. 8 depicts such a double-faced fibrous insulation product 10 inwhich a facer 12 is positioned on a first major surface of the fibrousinsulation 14 and a second facing material 16 is positioned on a secondmajor surface of the fibrous insulation 14.

The presence of water, dust, and/or other microbial nutrients in thefaced insulation product 10 may support the growth and proliferation ofmicrobial organisms. Bacterial and/or mold growth in the insulationproduct may cause odor and discoloration of the insulation product anddeterioration of the vapor barrier properties of Kraft paper. To inhibitthe growth of unwanted microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi, and/ormold in the faced insulation product 10, the facing materials 12, 16and/or the fibrous insulation 14 may be treated with one or moreanti-microbial agents and/or biocides. The anti-microbial agents and/orbiocides may be added during manufacture or in a post manufactureprocess of the fibrous insulation product. In addition, flameretardants, pigments, colorants, and/or other conventional additives maybe included in the faced insulation product 10.

Application of the waterless, thin-film adhesive to the first and secondfacing layers 12, 16 reduces the time associated with drying and bonding(curing) the adhesive, both to the facing layers 12, 16 and to thefibrous insulation product 10. Conventional adhesives are water-basedand require an enormous amount of heat energy to flash off the waterduring the curing of the adhesive. The waterless, thin-film adhesiverequires much less energy to cure, which may result in a reduction inmanufacturing costs. Additionally, the lack of water in the waterless,thin-film adhesive helps to reduce or eliminate the detrimental effectsto the insulation typically caused by water-based adhesives, such as,but not limited, to surface foil corrosion and the stimulation oftrimethylamine (TMA) and its associated odor. In addition, thewaterless, thin-film adhesive exhibits a constant or nearly constantweight distribution across the facing, unlike conventional water-basedadhesives which commonly have inconsistent weight across the facingmaterial due to equipment malfunction or the inherent uneven applicationof the water-based adhesive. The reduction of surface foil corrosionpermits a better adhesion of tape and duct board foil, if such tape isutilized.

In an alternative embodiment shown in FIG. 9, an uncured pack 40 isformed as described in detail above with respect to FIG. 7. Once theuncured pack 40 is formed and exits the forming chamber 25, facers 12,16 are applied to a top and bottom major surface of the uncured pack 40from rolls 90, 92. It is contemplated that facer 12 may instead besupplied to the conveyor 45 prior to the formation of the uncured pack40 such that the fibers formed from the spinners 15 are deposited ontothe facer 12. The facers 12, 16 and the uncured pack 40 enter the curingoven 60 where heated air is forced though a fan 75 through the loweroven conveyor 70, the insulation pack 40 and the facers 12, 16, theupper oven conveyor 65, and out of the curing oven 60 through an exhaustapparatus 80. As the double-faced fibrous insulation product 10 exitsthe oven 60, it may be bisected by a bisect saw 94 or other suitablecutting device and rolled into two rolls by an upper roll-up device 96and a lower roll-tip device 98. The product thus formed is an insulationproduct having thereon a facer 12 on one major surface thereof, such asis depicted in FIG. 5.

FIGS. 10A and 10B show alternate methods of forming the faced insulationproduct 10 in a post-curing or off-line process using a heated platen100 (FIG. 10A) and a heated roller 102 (FIG. 10B). Here, the facingmaterial 12 is unrolled from roll 90 onto the cured insulation layer 14.The heated platen 100 or heated roller 102 at least partially melts thewaterless, thin-film adhesive that has been pre-applied to the facingmaterial as described above to adhere the facer 12 onto the insulationlayer 14.

FIG. 11 illustrates an alternative post-cure method of forming thedouble-faced fibrous insulation product 10 utilizing a heatedcaterpillar 110. The heated caterpillar 110 has a heated upper belt 112that rotates around a first upper belt roller 114 and a second upperbelt roller 116 to compress the fibrous insulation layer 14 against aheated lower belt 120 that rotates around a first lower belt roller 122and a second lower belt roller 124. The upper belt 112 presses facing 12to an upper surface of the cured fibrous insulation layer 14 and thelower belt 120 presses facing 16 to a lower surface of the insulationlayer 14 for a time sufficient to heat the waterless, thin-filmadhesives to adhere facing layers 12, 16 to the fibrous layer 14 andform the fibrous insulation product 10.

In one exemplary embodiment, the fibrous insulation product 10 is a ductboard having facing materials on first and second major surfaces of aninsulation layer, a sealing flange, and optionally, male and femaleshiplap edges. The facing materials are formed of an outer surfacelayer, such as, but not limited to, a vapor barrier, and an innersurface layer formed of a nonwoven fibrous web, veil, or mat. Oneexample of a duct board 128 according to the present invention isdepicted in FIGS. 12-14. In this exemplary embodiment, a first facinglayer 130 is a vapor barrier positioned on a first major surface of thefibrous insulation layer 14 and is affixed to the first major surface bya waterless, thin-film adhesive 125. A second facing layer 132 may be afibrous web, such as the web described in detail above, which is affixedto a second major surface of the fibrous insulation layer 14 by awaterless thin-film adhesive 127. The waterless, thin-film adhesives125, 127 may be the same or different, but are both thermoplastic innature. It is to be appreciated that the vapor barrier and the fibrousweb forming the first and second facing layers 130, 132 each correspondto one of facer 12 or facer 16 described in detail above.

Turning to FIGS. 13 and 14, the duct board 128 may be formed into an airduct 135 by folding the duct board 128 into a generally rectangularshape such that the second facing layer 132 faces an interior portionthereof and the first facing layer (e.g., vapor barrier) is positionedon an exterior surface of the air duct 135. It is to be appreciated thatalthough a square air duct is shown, the air duct may be formed into anon-square shape, such as a rectangular, round, or oval air duct, aswould be understood by those of skill in the art. The second facinglayer 132 facilitates air flow through the duct and reduces oreliminates the occurrence of flyaway glass fibers from the insulationlayer 14. To facilitate bending of the duct board 128, grooves 144 maybe cut or otherwise formed into the duct board 128 at even intervalswhere the duct board 128 is to be folded to permit the duct board 128 tobe folded along the grooves 144 and formed into the air duct 135. Thesealing flange 134 may be adhered or bonded to the adjoining surface ofthe first facing layer 132 (e.g., a foil/scrim/Kraft layer) by heat andpressure due to the pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive 125.

In an alternate embodiment, shown in FIGS. 15-17, the first facing layer130 is wider than the insulation layer 14 and projects beyond theinsulation layer 14 along a transverse edge to form a sealing flange 134extending from a male shiplap edge 140. The first facing layer 130 maybe applied to the fibrous layer 14 in an offset manner such that atransverse edge of the first facing layer 130 extends beyond acorresponding transverse edge of the fibrous insulation layer 14 to formthe male shiplap edge 140. An opposing transverse edge of the insulationlayer 14 is thus formed into a female shiplap edge 142. The duct board128 may also be formed such that one or both of the longitudinal edgesalso form a shiplap edge (not depicted). As illustrated in FIG. 16,grooves 144 may be cut into the duct board to facilitate bending of theduct board into an air duct 135.

Once the duct board 128 is folded, as shown in FIG. 17, the male andfemale shiplap edges 140, 142 are mated and sealing flange 134 coversthe interface of the male and female shiplap edges 140, 142. As with theembodiment set forth above, the sealing flange 134 may be adhered orbonded to the adjoining surface of the first facing layer 132 (e.g., afoil/scrim/Kraft layer) by heat and pressure due to the pre-appliedwaterless, thin-film adhesive 125.

The waterless, thin-film adhesive seals the sealing flange 134 withouttape or staples and thus reduces, or even eliminates, the need for foiltape or staples, which are conventionally used in the industry. Becausefoil tape is expensive and time consuming to apply, the use of thewaterless, thin-film adhesive saves both time and money. Additionally,the sealing flange 134 may be securely and easily bonded in the field,such as with a hot iron, and may be repositioned due to thethermoplastic nature of the waterless, thin-film adhesive.

The invention of this application has been described above bothgenerically and with regard to specific embodiments. Although theinvention has been set forth in what is believed to be the preferredembodiments, a wide variety of alternatives known to those of skill inthe art can be selected within the generic disclosure. The invention isnot otherwise limited, except for the recitation of the claims set forthbelow.

1. A faced fibrous insulation product comprising: a fibrous insulation layer having first and second opposed major surfaces; and a first facing layer adhered to said first major surface, said first facing layer having thereon a first pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive, wherein said first facing layer is adhered to said first major surface of said fibrous insulation layer by heating said fibrous insulation layer and said first facing layer to a temperature at or above the melting point of said first pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive.
 2. The faced insulation product of claim 1, wherein said first pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive is selected from the group consisting of a polyethylene copolymer, polyurethane, ethylene vinyl acetate, amorphous polyolefin, polyethylene, low density polyethylene, cellophane, polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride, nylons, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyamides and cellulose acetate.
 3. The faced insulation product of claim 1, wherein said first facing layer is a vapor barrier and said first facing layer extends beyond said fibrous insulation layer to form a sealing flange.
 4. The faced insulation product of claim 3, wherein said insulation product contains a plurality of grooves to permit folding of said insulation product into one of a duct liner or a duct wrap.
 5. The faced insulation product of claim 3, wherein said first pre-applied thin-film adhesive is thermoplastic and said first facing layer and said sealing flange may be repaired or repositioned with the application of heat.
 6. The faced insulation product of claim 3, wherein said first pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive is substantially evenly applied to said fibrous insulation layer.
 7. The faced insulation product of claim 1, further comprising a second facing layer adhered to said second major surface of said fibrous insulation layer, said second facing layer having thereon a second pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive.
 8. The faced insulation product of claim 7, wherein said first and second facing layers are selected from the group consisting of a vapor barrier, a nonwoven mat, web and veil.
 9. A fibrous duct board comprising: a fibrous insulation layer having a first and second opposing major surfaces; a first facing layer adhered to said first major surface, said first facing layer having thereon a first pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive, wherein said first facing layer is wider than said insulation layer such that said first facing layer extends beyond an edge of said fibrous insulation layer to form a sealing flange; and a second facing layer adhered to said second major surface, said second facing layer having thereon a second pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive, wherein said first and second facing layers are adhered to said fibrous insulation layer by heating said fibrous insulation layer, said first facing layer, and said second facing layer a temperature at or above the melting points of said first and second waterless, thin-film adhesive.
 10. The fibrous duct board of claim 9, further comprising male and female shiplap edges, said sealing flange extending from said male shiplap edge.
 11. The fibrous duct board of claim 9, wherein said first and second pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive are substantially evenly applied to said fibrous insulation layer
 12. The fibrous duct board of claim 9, wherein said first and second pre-applied waterless, thin-film adhesive is selected from the group consisting of a polyethylene copolymer, polyurethane, ethylene vinyl acetate, amorphous polyolefin, polyethylene, low density polyethylene, cellophane, polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride, nylons, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyamides and cellulose acetate.
 13. The fibrous duct board of claim 9, wherein said first and second pre-applied thin-film adhesives are thermoplastic and said first and second facing layers may be repaired or repositioned with the application of heat.
 14. The fibrous duct board of claim 9, wherein said first facing layer is a vapor barrier and said second facing layer is selected from the group consisting of a nonwoven fibrous web, veil and mat.
 15. A method of forming a faced fibrous insulation product comprising: pre-applying a first waterless, thin-film adhesive to a first facing material to form a first facing layer; forming a pack of fibers having an uncured binder thereon; applying said first facing layer to a first major surface of said pack of fibers; heating said first facing material and said pack of fibers to cure said binder and at least partially melt said first waterless, thin-film adhesive to form a faced insulation product.
 16. The method of claim 15, further comprising: pre-applying a second waterless, thin-film adhesive to a second facing material to form a second facing layer; applying said second facing layer to a second major surface of said pack of fibers; at least partially melting said second waterless, thin-film adhesive to adhere said second facing layer to said pack of fibers, wherein said first and second waterless, thin-film adhesives may be the same or different.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein said step of applying said first facing layer positions said first facing layer to extend beyond said pack of fibers to form a sealing flange.
 18. The method of claim 17, further comprising: forming grooves in said faced insulation product; folding said insulation product along said grooves into a duct liner; and heating said sealing flange to seal said sealing flange against a first portion of said insulation product to secure the formation of said duct liner.
 19. The method of claim 16, wherein said first and second waterless, thin-film adhesives are selected from the group consisting of a polyethylene copolymer, polyurethane, ethylene vinyl acetate, amorphous polyolefin, polyethylene, low density polyethylene, cellophane, polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride, nylons, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyamides and cellulose acetate.
 20. The method of claim 16, wherein said first and second thin-film adhesives are thermoplastic and said first and second facing layers may be repaired or repositioned with the application of heat. 